Halo: The Fardas Snare
by jgormally
Summary: An original story set within the HALO universe. When a covenant flagship allows itself to be shot down over Peiu 3, SPARTAN 067 and Msgt. Cho are sent in to investigate. Could there be a plot to destroy the covenant from the inside out?
1. Prologue

The parched sand sifted down the slight slope of the dune as the distant vibrations became louder and more pronounced. A sunning lizard licked its eyes and gazed out over the valley below. Without warning, the source of the vibration-a large UNSC troop carrier- exploded into view over the top of the cliff, sending the lizard scuttling for the supposed safety of whatever hole it called home. The carrier screamed past and dropped down into the valley, accelerating as it did so to an insane velocity.

Inside the troop carrier, several of the Marines strained against the Gs forced upon their frames; the normal low hum of the atom engines was a deafening screech, pushed beyond limits it was never supposed to achieve. Only one figure was not in a crash harness: SPARTAN 067. The huge bipedal figure stood at the rear of the cabin, holding on (barely, it seemed) to an overhead support. The bucking of the ship seemed to not affect the large warrior in the least. The pilot, a Latina Petty Officer by the name of Perez, steered the ship, her hands flying over the controls, adjusting the course constantly. Beyond her, the view out of the front port was horrific. Dead and dying lay scattered everywhere, human and covenant alike. Red, orange, and purple ichors pooled together, casting a grotesque brownish hue over the entire battlefield. In the distance, an immense crater had been literally vaporized out of the planet, as the covenant flagship overhead had unleashed its weapons array on friend and foe alike.

Steering the carrier to the far edge of the battlefield, the pilot began to run through the pre-landing modes. The landing legs of the craft came down and the carrier settled onto the ground with a teeth-rattling _THUNK_. The Marines in the hold groaned as one as their harnesses released, dumping most of them onto the hard metal floor panels. Only a few of the soldiers managed to stay upright. The SPARTAN, unfazed in the least, let go of the support, made its way quickly to the back of the cabin and punched the control for the hatch to open. As the hatch lowered, the harsh desert wind blew in, coating everything with a fine stratum of dust. The senior enlisted Marine, a crusty old Japanese Master Sergeant by the name of Cho, quickly began shouting at the troops, marshalling them outside and into a hasty 180-degree defense. Cho turned as the SPARTAN clunked down the landing ramp and onto the field of battle. The SPARTAN nodded at the Master Sergeant, and they began to make their way over to the improvised field command. The Covenant had all but wiped out the human army that day, until a UNSC ship had dropped into orbit and blasted the flagship into oblivion.

Cho shook his head. "It doesn't make any sense. The covenant must have detected our ship when it came out of slipspace, yet it never so much as launched a single Banshee. It just sat there and let itself be shot down!"

The SPARTAN shrugged its powerful shoulders; all it offered was a husky grunt.

The battle was over; the humans had won, but this massacre could in no way be termed a victory. Each new battle was simply taking far too much out of the faltering human forces; something new had to happen.


	2. Chapter 1

CHAPTER 1

The command center was a shambles, equipment scattered in the wake of the covenant flagship's blast. Wounded officers and senior enlisted attempted to make sense of the chaos, but it was slow going, as the majority of them were still deaf from the explosive concussion. Master Sergeant Cho and SPARTAN 067 entered through the front flap and looked around. Cho grunted and walked forward, tapping a Lance Corporal on the shoulder. The LCPL turned around and stiffened at the sight of the Master Sergeant, but Cho waved him at ease and asked what had happened.

The noncom cleared his throat and spoke. "Sir, the battle was going badly; it looked like the covenant were gonna win. Word had just come down from command to pull up stakes and retreat when the damned covie ship blasted us. It was terrible, sir! It was like the sun had touched the earth! I watched the field and all those men out there get turned into drifting ash! I've never seen something so horrible before!"

Cho clapped his hand on the panicking noncom's shoulder. "Calm down, Lance Corporal. It's all over now; those covie bastards just sat there and let us blow them to Hell. We don't know why, yet, but we've got the best there is working on it."

For the first time, the LCPL noticed the SPARTAN standing motionless behind the Master Sergeant. He snapped to attention and snapped off a quick salute. The warrior returned the courtesy and moved forward, shouldering Cho out of the way. The LCPL looked terrified as the SPARTAN placed its hands on his shoulders, but then the warrior spoke up in a low, husky voice.

"We know that the covenant flagship was carrying one of their minor prophets. There is no way that the covenant would ever just give up and let one of their ships be captured or destroyed without a battle. We need to know why that flagship allowed itself to be atomized. Anything you can give us, information, details; we need everything you can possibly gather on this battle."

The noncom looked shocked. He stuttered for a few moments, his eyes sliding up and down the massive figure's frame before him. Finally, Cho growled and stepped forward. "Is there some kind of problem, son? The CPO, here, just asked you a question. Maybe you forgot how the military works, boy…"

The LCPL shook his head, a fine sheen of sweat standing out on his brow. "N-no, sir; it's just… I didn't know that any of the… SPARTANs… were… um… _female_, sir."

067 shook her head. "That's irrelevant, soldier. I need that data, and I need it NOW."

At the raising of the SPARTAN's voice, the noncom snapped even more rigid, and saluted again. "Aye, ma'am! I'll get right on that!"

Cho turned to the female SPARTAN as the noncom scurried away. "The corps these days; what's it coming to?"


	3. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

The SPARTAN stood just outside the command tent, her right foot planted on an open box of ammo. She nimbly refilled her magazines with 7.72mm rounds, her fingers flying through the familiar task. The field of battle still smoldered, the wreckage of the once-proud covenant flagship jutting from a jagged crater like some bizarre mountain. An hour ago, a small team of technicians had set out in a warthog to the site to begin analysis of the hulk.

067's reverie was broken by the sound of footsteps behind her. Turning, she saw Master Sergeant Cho exiting the tent, his middle-aged face tight with concern.

"Those damn squidlips sure picked a bad time to go all soft on us," he gruffed, his bald head gleaming in the double suns' light. "If they'd followed their usual M.O. and tried to glass the planet from orbit, it might've actually saved lives. As is, they shot off their plasma weapons in low orbit, and then never even turned around to fight when our frigate attacked. I dunno, what do YOU think?"

The female SPARTAN stood motionless a few more moments, then gave a barely perceptible shrug, her MJOLNIR armor rustling as she did so.

"I don't know why they would just give up, Master Sergeant. Their shield systems and armor plating can usually withstand most of what our weapons can dish out; it's a good thing those upgrades to our MAC cannon came through last month, or that fight could have gotten even uglier."

Cho made a noise in his native language that sounded insulting. "And just how the hell could it have gone worse? Almost every solider, human and covenant alike, on that battlefield was killed by the concussive blast wave of that thing falling out of the sky! That was about two battalions' worth of good soldiers! Maybe you SPARTANs are just so indestructible in your fancy armor you can't even identify with us regular humans anymore, but we_ normals_ would term this as a LOSS, soldier!"

The older man broke off, glaring up at the two-meter tall warrior. 067 said nothing; her gaze could not be interpreted through the opacity of her golden visor. After about ten seconds of uneasy silence, she turned back to the field and reached for another empty magazine to fill. Softly, more softly than Cho would have expected from such a large person, she spoke.

"I do know what it's like to lose companions, Sergeant. The SPARTANs can be killed just as quickly and pointlessly as any other soldier."

Cho's forehead wrinkled. "Look, I didn't mean it like that; it's just, well… it seems sometimes like you people are so… damned… _indestructible_, is all. I wonder if you SPARTANs ever feel attachment, even with each other."

067 shook her head, sunbeams bouncing off of her visor.

"Attachment is an emotion I haven't felt in over a decade, Sergeant. Not since Reach. Not since…" she trailed off and shook herself. "Gather your team, Master Sergeant. We move out to that crash site in 15 mikes. I want everyone briefed and ten 'hogs prepped."

Cho shook his head. "Why? A tech team already went out there."

The female warrior slammed a full magazine into her SMG and ratcheted the slide back. "That team should have reported in by now. We're not losing anymore companions while I'm on the job. Never again."


	4. Chapter 3

Two Warthogs sped across the smoldering field toward the downed ship, a substantial dust cloud billowing up into the air behind them. Following in their wake was a third 'hog, the gauss variation, its gunner sweeping the weapon back and forth across the terrain. In a sudden burst of speed and grit, an M274 "Mongoose" buzzed through the narrow gap of the lead 'hogs, SPARTAN 067 hunched low over the controls, Master Sergeant Cho behind her with a sniper rifle.

The Mongoose, one of the less-used vehicles in the UNSC's fleet, had accompanied 067 on a dozen missions; she had tinkered with it for untold hours, modifying its chassis and engine to make it faster and more maneuverable than the regular stock. Now, Sergeant Cho leaned in close to her helmet, his voice nearly lost in the wind buffeting the small vehicle. "We should slow down; we don't want to run into any surviving Covenant on this thing without backup!"

067 nodded and eased off the throttle, allowing the warthogs to close the gap. "Good thinking, Sergeant." She shouted back at him. The Asian man grinned, his scarred face becoming almost boyish momentarily. "Hell, CPO; someone's gotta balance you out! You've probably got more adrenaline flowing through you right now than I do!"

067 turned her head slightly to the side. "Nope. Just more testosterone."

Cho stared in disbelief before breaking out into an even wider grin. "Aw, you're just funning with m—"

That was when the world exploded.

The wind blew across her face, cooling her sweaty forehead. _Mmmm, _she thought. _That feels nice. _The sun returned after the breeze, warming her skin again. She heard her puppy growling softly beside her. _Baxter must be dreaming, _she thought, reaching out to caress his fur. Instead of feeling the cocker spaniel's luxurious coat, she felt something hard, metallic; something slightly oily and cold.

Snapping her eyes open, 067 saw two Jackals standing over her, their alien sniper rifles pointed at her head. They argued with each other, their growling and yarping high-pitched, grating in her augmented ears. Her left hand shot out and grabbed one's ankle, the frail bone shattering. As it squawked in surprise and pain, she bodily lifted it off the ground and swung it into its companion, feeling both of their ribcages crumple with the impact. Leaping to her feet, she quickly surveyed the scene around her. The Mongoose was trashed, a smoldering heap of metal. Twenty feet away, two other Jackals and four grunts stood around the Marines, preparing to execute them. Bending, 067 snatched up one of the fallen Carbines, turned, and pumped 6 rounds into all of their skulls. The aliens fell soundlessly to the ground.

The Marines got to their feet. 067 saw to her dismay that there were six less of them than before the explosion had happened. Looking again, she saw that the surviving Marines were all from the Gauss 'hog. The IED had gone off directly in the center of their convoy.

_Fucking Jackals!_ She cursed to herself. Suddenly, she remembered Sergeant Cho. She turned frantically back to the Mongoose, looking for some sign of life, but what she saw on closer inspection made her heart sink. Cho's body lay crushed under the wreck, his left arm jutting out, as if reaching out to her in its last moment.

067 Shook her head fiercely, blinking away the unexpected tears that clouded her sight. _None of that on the battlefield,_ she reminded herself. _It'll only get you killed._

The Marines had grabbed up their weapons and were running to her. "CPO, are you all right?" One of them yelled. She nodded, hefting the Carbine on her shoulder. "Is that 'Hog of your still operational?" She asked. The same Marine, a young black lance corporal, nodded. "Yes, Ma'am. It's just flipped over, but it'll run."

The SPARTAN nodded. "Well, boys, let's get to that ship. The sooner we can get in its cover and out of the open, the safer we'll be." The Marines grunted affirmation and two of them ran off to flip the vehicle. The Lance Corporal stayed by her, uncertain. "But, uh, ma'am, the 'Hog only seats three; we've got a full load. Do you want one of us to stay here?"

067 shook her head. "No, Lance Corporal. These Jackals didn't get all the way out here on foot; I'll be in the lead in one of their ghosts, and you'll be covering my six in that Gauss. What's your name?"

The young Marine seemed surprised to be asked his name by a SPARTAN. "Um, it's Washington, ma'am." 067 put her gloved hands on his shoulders. "Well, Washington, Sergeant Cho was a good man; he was one of the few people who knew my real name. You're in command of those two privates, so that makes you my go-to guy. You can call me Sherri."


	5. Chapter 4

The Ghost's engine whined as 067 pushed it to its limits, blue contrail fanning out from its two side-mounted nacelles. While a Ghost was generally faster than a 'hog, the few the jackals had hidden were heavily damaged, probably from the shockwave of the Capital Cruiser smashing down into the planet's surface.

Even so, the Ghost still managed to outpace the 'hog by a few meters. 067 had instructed the Marines to follow her trail exactly, as she would have a better view of the terrain from her vehicle. This would help them to avoid any more booby traps the surviving covenant may have placed.

The sun was beginning to set by the time the surviving soldiers reached the downed cruiser, and long shadows were starting to stretch over the plains. As the two vehicles pulled up, Lcpl. Washington pointed towards the wreck. "Look, ma'am; blood over there."

There were smears of red human blood near a ragged-looking hole in the side of the cruiser. One of the smears ended in a bloody handprint. As the soldiers drew closer, they could see at least two dead bodies in the rubble.

Washington shook his head. "FoF tags identify these two as members of the investigative team, ma'am. Chances are, if there are active covenant in the area, the rest of the team isn't far away."

067 nodded, picking up an SMG and a few clips. "Well, if they are near, they're most likely inside the wreck of that ship." She turned to the Marines, noticing how young they all were for the first time. The oldest, Lcpl. Washington, couldn't have been more than 20. _But then again, we were all only children when we were initiated into this life…_

"All right, men." She barked, "Let's get inside and mop up these bastards. I want to recover my team, and I'm not too particular about taking prisoners. You get me?"

The Marines all smiled, readying their weapons. 067 smiled beneath her helmet. "Ooh-rah."

And with that, they entered the cruiser.


End file.
